It’s a big weekend across the border in Plaster Rock! The recent dumping of snow didn’t halt the World Pond Hockey Championships; and it’s benefiting the local economy in a BIG way. New Source 8’s Angela Christoforos reports…

There’s more than 130 team at the 13th annual World Pond Hockey Championship of Plaster Rock. This winter event brings in BIG crowds and BIG bucks!

Event Organizer Danny Braun said, “We expect anywhere from 4 to 6 thousand people over the course of the weekend aside from the players and participating teams so with a little community of 11 hundred people it more than triples our population certainly on any given day or on any given point throughout the weekend.”

It appeals to hockey enthusiasts high and low and brings in well over a million dollars each year.

Organizer Nicki Haddad said, “It’s not only our community in Plaster Rock it’s the surrounding areas, we have people that travel as far as Edmundston which is 45 minutes away and Woodstock which is an hour away they’re staying in motels and eating there as well.”

This scene has brought in teams from every continent except Antarctica!

“Winter time is always a downtime, especially in this community cause we rely a lot on our wood industry so of course with the snow a lot of things kind of go down so it’s a great spin off for the whole community,” said Haddad.

Palmas del Mar Team said, “This is probably our 7th year. We aren’t missing this this is the best weekend of the year for sure!”

Not just for fans of the winter sport, but also for the local community that accommodates those people during their stay. Money raised from the World Pond Hockey Championships goes towards funding the Tobique Plex Community Center of Plaster Rock.